A review of long-term effects of COVID-19, conducted by Sonia Villapol, PhD, Center for Neuroregeneration at Houston Methodist Research Institute, and colleagues, shows that 80 percent of patients have persistent symptoms for weeks to months after acute COVID-19 infection. Of the 55 identified effects, fatigue, anosmia, lung dysfunction, abnormal chest X-ray and neurological disorders were the most common. The study discusses the most common symptoms and complicated presentations.

From a clinical point of view, physicians should be aware of the symptoms, signs and biomarkers in order to promptly assess and stop long-term COVID-19 progression, minimize the risk of chronic effects and help reestablish pre-COVID-19 health.

More research is needed to understand causes, mechanisms and risks to support development of preventive measures, rehabilitation techniques and clinical management strategies designed to holistically address after-COVID-19 care.

This work was supported by an R21 grant from National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and funds from Houston Methodist Research Institute. See the MedRxiv for further details on the 55 identified effects, recommendations on clinical care and next steps.